A Serpent's Secret
by LoneHowl
Summary: Sometimes, a friend must become an enemy in order to remain a friend. Sometimes, they are a friend the whole time. And sometimes, they may just be fictional characters come to life in a fictional world that suddenly is very, truly real.
1. 1: A New Start, A New Life

Ohayo! Yep, I'm back with a new story. -sweatdrop- sorry, I know I haven't updated my others yet, but this one's been nagging at me for a while now!

Yes, Ms. Grosse was my 7th grade math teacher, and just as obsessed with Harry Potter as I am. Which is pretty bad.

(Disclaimer) -checks pockets. all sorts of stuff falls out as she empties them- nope no Harry Potter rights here.

* * *

"HA!" I yelled triumphantly, setting my book and bookmark down on my bed, "TWO DAYS! Beat THAT, Ms. Grosse!" I started doing a happy dance. "Oh yeah, two days, new record, uh huh, I'm good!" I chanted. Stopping my dance, I sat down at my computer and logged onto my computer. 

I sent a quick email to my former math teacher, telling her that I finished _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_. After hitting sent, I leaned back in my chair, thinking about the book. Something on my computer screen caught my attention. My inbox window was blinking, signaling new mail. Curious, I opened the new email, since I knew Ms. Grosse couldn't type that fast. This is what I found:

_Sender: theserpentheartsdesire.dream_

_Subject: a serpent's secret_

_Message: Hello, Arietta. Have you ever wanted Hogwarts to really exist? To be part of the story? To do magic? Don't deny it, I know you have. Isn't it your greatest wish, to just be taken away from your life? Well, this is your once-in-a-lifetime chance to do just that. Hit the link at the bottom of this message, and you'll be taken away. The choice is yours, I'm sure you'll make the right one. I mean, you know everything there is to know, don't you?_

_**A new start, a new life**_

I reread the email several times. Who the hell sent me this! I looked around, searching for hidden cameras and tape recorders. I never told anyone about wanting to be taken away from my life, and now some weirdo sends me an email like this. I debated whether or not to hit the link. I was only 15, so it's not like I had any info stored on my computer that was theft-worthy. Getting up, I picked up my deck of Tarot cards. Shuffling them, I kept the question in my mind: '_What should I do?_'

Drawing the top card, I sighed. Four of Cups, meaning reaching out for new friendships. I guess I'll hit the link then. Stashing my cards in my pocket, I sat down and hit the link. A pop-up appeared.

_I knew you would hit the link. Very well, you will be taken from this life. You already have the item that you wish to bring in your pocket. Your heart yearns for new friends, so new friends you shall have. But be warned, the friendships shall come at a price…_

As I read it, I started to feel light-headed. Once I had read the last word, I passed out.

I opened my eyes to see a bushy-haired brunette hovering over me, looking worried.

"Are you ok, Ari?" she asked me in a British accent. She sounded familiar...

"Yeah, fine..." I mumbled, holding my head in an attempt to make my head stop pounding.

"You sure I shouldn't go and get Mum?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure." Looking around, I tried to figure out where I was. Obviously, I wasn't home anymore. In fact... Nothing around me looked familiar at all. Looking up, I saw a bird ('_An owl?_' I thought) fly through the window of the house I was in front of, carrying two letters. Two seconds later, a woman called us.

"Hermione, Arietta, come inside for a second!" I jumped. Hermione! Wait, wasn't she from...! The girl, Hermione, I guessed, grabbed my hand.

"C'mon, let's go see what Mum wants!" she said, dragging me with her. Passing a window, I looked at my reflection and gasped. I looked like the girl and I was eleven!

'_Holy shit, I'm a fifteen year old trapped in an eleven year olds body! And I look like Hermione Granger!_'

Once inside, a nice-looking woman, presumably our 'mother' handed us parchment envelopes. I caught the sight of emerald green ink on the front.

_Miss Arietta Granger_

_Second bedroom on the right_

_Bed by the north window_

It said, with everything else that goes on a letter. I flipped it over to the back and saw the red wax sealing the parchment shut, with the Hogwarts Crest on the wax.

A feeling of confusion flowed into my mind, but it wasn't my own feeling. Looking over at Hermione, I saw that she looked confused and excited at the same time. I briefly wondered why I was feeling her emotion when the words _twin bond_ crossed my mind. Shaking my head, I quickly opened my letter and read the first page.

_Dear Ms. Granger,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Looking over my book list, I saw many familiar titles, and a few that I didn't recognize, including a book titled The Future Lies in the Cards. I looked over the next sheet of parchment, and it had the supplies listed on it, such as the robes, wand, cauldron, etc. A slip on parchment fell out of the envelope. Curious, I picked it up. It had the words _Hogwarts Express, platform 9 ¾ _written on it in the same emerald ink as the rest of the sheets.

"I knew magic existed!" Hermione exclaimed. "I knew it did when that plate fixed itself…" her trailed off as she kept reading. "The Future Lies in the Cards? Ari, don't you read cards to tell fortunes?" she looked at me. My hand went to my pocket where my deck was.

"Yeah, I do…" I muttered, still trying to believe this was all real.

"Well, today is July 30, so we need to send the reply by tomorrow." Our mum said. "What do they mean by 'sent us your owl'?"

"I think we have to send the reply back with that owl that brought the letters." I said, pointing to the owl that was sitting patiently on the windowsill. Hermione ran and got a pen and paper from the table nearby and neatly wrote a note on it, saying that we accepted the invitation. The owl took it and flew off.

"Hey, look, it came with directions to some place that we have to go to!" Hermione held up a sheet of parchment with directions and a map on it.

"Then it's settled, we'll go and get your supplies tomorrow!" Mum said happily. Obviously, she was thrilled with the fact that we could do magic.

With that, Hermione grabbed my hand and pulled me to a staircase, which she proceeded to drag me up. She led me into a room that was pale lavender with two beds, one next to the window that faced north and the other bed near the window that faced south. It had a large dresser and a walk-in closet, along with two bookshelves. One bookshelf looked like it had text books on it, while the other had all sorts of books about magic and fairy-tales. There was a computer desk in the corner with two laptops on it, one that had an H on it and one that had an A on it.

Hermione let go of my hand and flopped onto the bed near the south window.

Taking the hint, I threw myself onto the other bed. Taking my cards out of my pocket, I started to shuffle them absently. Hermione sighed.

"So we're going to be witches, huh?" she asked. "I hope I'm good enough for the school…" she said a bit fearfully. I held out the deck to her. She took it and shuffled. Then she handed it back to me and I drew the top card.

"I'm sure you'll do fine. Success is in your future." I said, acting like a fortune teller, giggling a little at the World card in my hand. I shuffled the cards myself and drew one. The Fool stared back at me.

* * *

For those of you who are like me and can read cards, you know what the Fool means. For everyone else, the Fool means a new chapter of one's life opening up. 

RR, please? I only got one review for my last chapter of A Blessing in Disguise. -hangs head- shows just how underappreciated I am...


	2. 2: A Taste of Magic

Dis: The sun's last rays cast about their light, setting sea, land, and sky alike awash in golden hues... And yet... I still own nothing.

* * *

"I'm sure you'll do fine. Success is in your future." I said, acting like a fortune teller, giggling a little at the World card in my hand. I shuffled the cards myself and drew one. The Fool stared back at me.

"If that isn't a sign, I don't know what is." I said quietly, putting my deck on the nightstand by the bed. Looking over at the other bed, I saw that Hermione had dozed off. Flopping on my back, I started to let my mind wander.

'_What the hell am I doing here? I'm not supposed to be in England, I'm not even supposed to be in an eleven-year-old's body! I'm 15 for the Lady's sake!_' Sighing, I flipped onto my stomach and stared out the window. '_I mean, I know this is what I've always wanted, but-_' Hermione's voice jerked me out of my thoughts.

"You're not really my sister, are you?" she asked quietly, as if to not attract her mother's attention from downstairs.

"What makes you say that?" I asked, sliding into my 'I'm lying but you don't know it' mode.

"After you fell out of the tree, your accent changed. You sounded American. Then you answered Mum's questions about the letter a little to quickly. And then that deck in your pocket wasn't the same as the one that Mum bought my sister. My sister had Fairies, not Dragons. You're also acting more immature, for lack of a better word, than my sister does." Hermione said, sounding very much like she does in the third book when she tells how she found out Lupin was a werewolf. "Mum couldn't tell, but I know how my twin sister acts."

I sighed again.

"You're right. I'm not your sister." I said simply. Hermione looked slightly triumphant. "My name IS Arietta, but I'm really supposed to be turning 16 soon. Just over a month, in fact."

"How did you know what the letters were talking about?" Hermione now sounded genuinely curious. She was now sitting cross-legged on her bed. I sat up and mirrored her position. This was going to take a while.

About 10 or so minutes later

"So you're really 15-year-old American girl who read about this Hogwarts place in a series of books that isn't finished yet and I'm what's called a Muggleborn?" Hermione clarified.

"That about sums it up." I said.

"Wow."

"Yeah. But I can't tell you anything else because I don't want to screw anything up."

"Bugger." I snapped my head up to look at her.

"I might be American, but I know what that means!"

"Sorry, it's just a lot to take in." Nodding, I tried to stand up and almost fell over. Grabbing the mattress, I tried to regain my balance.

"Alright there, Ari?" Hermione asked, sounding worried.

"Yeah, I think my center of balance is a little off. I'm used to actually having a bust and being like a foot taller." I replied, slowly letting go of the mattress.

"Well, that's nothing a good night's sleep won't help. Night, Ari." Hermione changed into her night clothes and went to bed. Following her example, I opened the curtains to let the moonlight in and fell asleep.

The Next Day

"Ari, wake up! We have to go shopping today!" a high-pitched voice and some gentle poking shook me out of sleep. Groaning, I pulled the covers over my head and rolled away from the insistent poking.

"Lemme 'lone, I wanna shleep…" I slurred. I was about to doze off again when a pair of hands shook me.

"Ari, come ON, get UP!"

"Why should I?" I grumbled, pulling the covers off of my head and looking at Hermione.

"We're going shopping today for our school supplies, and you don't want to miss that!" she said bouncily. She was dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a pink sweatshirt. Sighing in frustration, I got up and dug around in the dresser for some clothes. Within minutes I was wearing a pair of jeans that had holes in the knees and a blue sweatshirt. I had almost gotten my shoes on when Hermione grabbed my hand and dragged me down for breakfast.

I was half way done with my bacon and eggs when Hermione dragged me back UP the stairs to brush our teeth. This time, she actually waited until I was done to drag me back DOWN the stairs to get to the car.

'_If she's this excited right now, I can't WAIT to see her in Diagon Alley…_' I thought as the car pulled out of the driveway.

We spent maybe a quarter of an hour just driving around, trying to find the right place. Finally, we went down a street in London that looked about right. Our mother parked the car and we got out to look around the shops. I was the first to see the Leaky Cauldron.

"There it is!" I said with not-so-fake enthusiasm. Hermione looked where I was looking and literally started to bounce on the balls of her feet. Out of nowhere, I was feeling extremely excited. Mum walked across the street to the pub, with us on wither side of her. Once inside, I led the two of them to the counter where Tom was standing.

"Excuse me," I said politely, since Mum was still kind of dazed and Hermione was too busy looking around, "could you please show us the way to Diagon Alley?"

"Sure, right this way." Tom replied, taking his wand out of his pocket. He led us out a back door and we emerged into a small space behind the pub. I watched Tom tap the bricks in the right pattern to open the gateway. Third one above the middle trash can, then up two, over two, and down one. The bricks started to rearrange themselves to form the gate to Diagon Alley.

"My word… It really is magic!" Mum exclaimed as she watched the bricks move. Hermione looked amazed. I started feeling amazed as well, but I had no idea why.

"First you all will want to go to Gringotts, to exchange money. It's the big white building on your left." Tom advised. Mum nodded slowly, still taking in the fact that a wall just turned into a doorway.

We walked through and I could hear the bricks scraping as the gate closed again. Looking around, I gasped in amazement. The Alley was packed with all sorts of people, most of which were wearing robes. People were chatting, bargaining, arguing, and just generally going about their business.

"Mum, Ari, aren't we supposed to go to Gringotts?" Hermione asked tentatively, still in awe of what we were seeing.

"Gringotts, right. White building on the left." Mum said. We walked over to the bank and up the white marble stairs to the large doors. Above the doors was a large plaque with words written on it. We stopped just long enough to read the words:

Enter, stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed.

For those who take but do not earn

Must pay dearly in their turn.

If you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware,

Of finding more than treasure here.

"Well, that sounds ominous…" Mum murmured. We walked through the doors and stopped in our tracks. There were many little creatures walking around the lobby. They were all short, with brownish, wrinkled skin and odd-looking suits.

"What on earth…?" Mum asked.

"Goblins…" Hermione and I said as the same time. I was the first to recover from our amazement. I walked up to one of the tellers, Mum and Hermione walking behind me.

"Excuse me, we'd like to exchange money, please." I said politely.

"How much do you want to change?" the goblin asked gruffly.

"Two hundred pounds' worth, please." Mum said, having also recovered from her amazement.

"Very well." The goblin then proceeded to tell us how much each coin was worth. We ended up with close to a hundred and fifty Galleons, fifty Sickles, and fifteen Knuts. Mum and Hermione looked confused as the goblin finished the explaination.

Ten minutes later, we were walking around the Alley, looking for all the things on our lists.

"Mum, Ollivanders' is at the other end of the Alley." I said as we were looking around.

"How do you know?" she asked.

"I, um… overheard someone talking about it." I lied quickly.

"Okay…" We started to walk in the right direction.

We walked into the dusty store with the faint tinkling of the shop bell.

"Hello? Is anyone working here? Hello?" Mum called.

"Good afternoon." An old voice said quietly from our right. The three of us jumped. An old man was there. He was bald on the top of his head, and there was gray hair around the sides. He wore a pair of glasses over misty-gray eyes. He was hunched over slightly, making him about the same height as Hermione and I. "I'm assuming you two young ladies are here for wands, right? Well, you first," he said, pointing at Hermione. She nervously stepped forward.

"Alright…"

"Which arm is your wand arm?" Ollivander asked gently. Hermione looked confused but held out her left hand. Ollivander took out a measuring tape and began taking measurements, starting with her arm. Then he walked away into the rows of shelves. That was when Hermione noticed that the tape was still measuring on its own. She jumped and threw it away from her. Ollivander came back with a long, thin box in his hands.

"Try this one. Maple and phoenix feather, ten inches, rather rigid." He pushed a thin stick into Hermione's hand. When he saw her confused look, he added, "Go ahead, give it a wave."

Hermione waved the wand at a shelf. The shelf fell over. Mum, Hermione and I all jumped.

"No, not that one. Try this, willow and unicorn hair, thirteen inches, quite bendy." He handed her another wand. This time, she set a box on fire. After a few more tries, he found the right combination: birch and unicorn hair, eleven inches.

"Now you, my dear." He said to me. I held out my right hand automatically. He took the measurements and gave me a wand.

"Willow and phoenix feather, nine inches."

I waved it and set fire to the curtains.

"Redwood and unicorn hair, twelve and a half inches."

I made half the shelves fall over.

"Willow and dragon heartstring, twelve inches." I took hold of the wand and there was a sudden warmth in the wood. The warmth spread to my fingers and up my arm. I waved the wand, already knowing that it was the right one, and watched in awe as gold sparks flew.

"Well done. Now, ma'am," he turned to Mum, "That will be twelve Galleons and three Sickles." While Mum counted out the right coins, I looked at my wand.

'_Wow. I really have a magic wand. I can do magic… This is gonna be so cool…_' I thought.


	3. 3: Testing the Waters

Alrighty! The next chapter of _A Serpent's Secret_ is about to start. I just need to take care of one thing before it does.

DISCLAIMER: Yeah, yeah, move along, people, nothing to see, norights to _Harry Potter_here.

* * *

'_Wow. I really have a magic wand. I can do magic… This is gonna be so cool…_' I thought. I numbly followed Hermione and Mum out of the shop, still staring at awe at my wand. I had done it. I had actually done magic. It was just a few sparks, but still, it counts, right?

"Right, now, the next thing on the list is a pewter cauldron. Now where on earth can we get one of those…?" Mum's voice broke through my thoughts.

"Other end of the Alley, Ma… Near the doorway…" I said absently with an American accent, not really paying attention to what I was saying.

"What?" she asked, startled. That brought me back to the world of the waking.

"Oh… I, er, saw the cauldron shop near Gringotts as we were coming here." I stammered, trying to make up a believable lie to tell. Mum looked suspicious, but appeared to have bought what I said.

"Well, since we have to make our way that way anyway, we'll do that last. Now where can we get crystal phials…?"

"The apothecary's down by the bookstore." I said before I could stop myself.

"Yes, I saw it there as well as we passed." Hermione said, coming to my defense. She sent me a 'could-you-PLEASE-be-more-discreet-with-what-you-know?' look.

"Well, the robe shop is right there, so I guess we could go there first." Mum said. We nodded and followed her to Madam Malkin's store. We were greeted as soon as we walked in the door.

"Hogwarts, dears?" A middle aged woman came from what looked like a back room. Hermione and I nodded. "Follow me. I have another student getting measured as well." The two of us followed who I could only assume was Madam Malkin into the room she came out of. Sure enough, there was only one other person in there, and my breath caught in my throat when I saw who it was.

"You two going to Hogwarts as well?" I nodded to the boy as I was put up on a stool and a tape measure just like the one Ollivander used started to take measurements. "Do you know what House you'll be in? Well, nobody really knows for sure until they get sorted, but still. I know I'll be in Slytherin. Best house there is. My whole family's been in Slytherin. I suppose that if I got into Hufflepuff or something I'd leave. What about you?"

Hermione opened her mouth, probably to ask who he was, when Madam Malkin came back in.

"You're all set, Draco, dear. Your robes will be ready in a few hours."

Draco hopped down from his stool and grinned at us.

"I guess I'll see you at Hogwarts then."

Then he left.

Madam Malkin came back a few minutes later to tell us that our robes would be ready soon and that we could get whatever else we needed when we came back for them. Thanking her, Mum led us out to Flourish and Blotts.

As we made our way to the next store, I started thinking. '_In the books, it was HARRY who met Draco, not Hermione and, by extension, me. That meant that Harry got there either earlier or later than we did. After Madam Malkin's, where did he go…? Oh, that's right, that was his last stop…_'

I stopped my train of thought there in favor of going into Flourish and Blotts.

Walking in that store was like heaven for me. There were books on every wall, and the shelves reached to the ceiling. Mum handed me my book list and I started zipping around, searching for what I'd need. As I passed the counter for the second time, I noticed the book that Harry saw in the series.

'_That Hair-Loss curse has Brittany Hart written all over it…_' I thought as I smirked and went to take my books to Mum.

An hour later, we were making our way out of the Leaky Cauldron back to Mum's car. Hermione already had her nose in one of her textbooks, seemingly fascinated with everything it said. From what I could see, the book was _Hogwarts: A History_. I rolled my eyes. Typical Hermione.

I don't know when I started to drift off, but I opened my eyes to find that we were just pulling into the driveway of home. Yawning, I gathered up my stuff (or what I thought was my stuff, seeing as Hermione and I had put our stuff on the seat between us and everything got mixed up) and got ready to get out of the car. As soon as the engine was turned off, I was out of the car and half way to the house.

After a simple dinner of chicken and rice, Mum sent Hermione and I to bed.

I lay on my bed staring at the ceiling. Then I heard some faint rustling. I looked over and saw the dark form of my sister hanging half way off the side of her bed, rummaging for something underneath it.

"Herm. Hermi!" I whispered. "What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for my flashlight. I wanted to keep reading. But I can't find it!" Hermione sat up.

"So light your wand!" I replied easily.

"I can't find it and don't know how!" She whispered loudly.

"Gah…" I felt around on my nightstand for my own wand. When I didn't find it, I sighed in frustration.

"What are you looking for?" she asked quietly.

"My own wand." I replied. When I didn't find it, I got an idea. "_Accio_ wand!" I said experimentally. Warmth spread down my arm and a tendril of it leapt out of my fingers and I felt it attach to something and start coming back.

I heard a faint rattling, like a pencil rolling across a desk, before I felt something bump my fingers. Reaching out, I grabbed it. It was my wand.

"That was so cool." I said. A bubble of excitement blossomed in my chest. I just did my first piece of intentional magic.

"What did you do!" Hermione whispered fiercely.

"I summoned my wand with the summoning charm. Now," I held my wand up, "to find yours. _Lumos!_"

The tip of my wand flared to life and a narrow beam of light hit the ceiling. I pointed my wand in random directions to get the light everywhere.

"There it is!" Hermione bent over the side of the bed again and picked up her wand from where it had fallen on the floor.

"Good. _Nox_." The light on my wand went out. "I'm going to sleep. Tomorrow's August 28th, isn't it?"

"Yeah, why?"

"We leave for Hogwarts on September first. What say we practice a few spells before then? Couldn't hurt."

"Sure. Night, Ari."

"Night, Hermi." With that, I put my wand back on my nightstand, and I went to sleep.

* * *

If Arietta seems really mature to you, remember, mentally, she's 15, even if she's only physically 11. And she already knows a few spells from reading the books. Just thought I'd clear that up. 


	4. 4: It's Something New

I feel so unloved! I only got one review for my last chapter, andI KNOW people have been reading this! -sob-

Dis: i no own, you no sue.

* * *

"Night, Hermi." With that, I put my wand back on my nightstand, and I went to sleep.

The next four days just flew by. Hermione was constantly looking up spells and practicing the simplest ones. Before long, we mastered the very basic spells.

Let me tell you, it's harder than they make it look like. Half the time the spell didn't work at all, and the other half the spell did something wrong.

Before we knew it, it was September first. As we made our way through King's Cross, Hermione brought something up.

"Where's the platform?" she asked. "There's nine," she pointed at the aforementioned platform, "and there's ten, but no nine and three quarters."

"Perhaps you read the ticket wrong?" Mum suggested as she looked for the platform.

"No, I read it right," Hermione held out the ticket to Mum, "see? It says right there 'platform nine and three quarters at eleven'."

I glanced at the clock on the wall. 10:50. Not enough time to let them keep pondering.

"I think we have to go through the barrier." I spoke up. Mum and Hermione looked at me.

"Why do you think that?" Mum asked. A flash of panic swept through me.

"I, uh, heard some people talking about it." I glanced at Hermione, silently pleading with her to follow my lead. Thankfully, she got the hint.

"Yeah, Mum, I think I heard them too. We may as well try, because we don't have much time left."

Mum looked at the two of us suspiciously, but nodded all the same. As we approached the barrier, I shifted so I was next to Hermione.

"I'll go first, since I know how it works." I hissed just loud enough for her to hear me. "Trust me on this; just make sure you build up some speed." Hermione gave me a small nod.

"Well, here's the barrier. I don't see how you can go through it, though." Mum said. I grinned.

"Like this." I replied, my American accent leaking through. With that, I brought my trolley around and ran at the barrier. I closed my eyes a second before I would have hit a solid wall, but I never felt an impact. I pulled my trolley to a stop and opened my eyes.

Right in front of me was a huge scarlet train with the words _Hogwarts Express_ on the side in gold. There were at least a hundred people around me, some in robes, some in jeans and a t-shirt. I heard a faint _whoosh_ next to me and suddenly Hermione was there.

"Bloody hell…" she whispered. There was another _whoosh_ and then Mum was there as well. We all looked around in awe, but we recovered quickly once we heard the warning whistle of the train.

We stowed our luggage on the train quickly and rushed back out to Mum.

"I expect you both back for the holidays." She said as she gave us each a hug.

"Yes, Mum." We answered in unison as we hugged her back.

"Now hurry and get on the train. And don't forget to send letters once you get there!" Mum shooed us onto the train just as the leaving whistle blew. We barely made it on the train before it started moving. Hermione turned to me.

"Well, let's find a place to sit." She said.

"We'll have to split up, since all the cars have people in them. I'll head this way." I said, moving towards the back. Hermione nodded and went in the opposite direction.

Making sure my wand was still in my jacket pocket, I went to the overhead compartment that had my trunk. I grabbed a set of my robes and went into a nearby bathroom to change into them. Stashing my Muggle clothes away in my trunk again and searched for a place to sit.

I poked my head into a nearby compartment that had most of the seats filled.

"Excuse me," I said timidly, "but is it alright if I sit in this compartment? Everywhere else is full." That's when I got a good look at the people in the room.

Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, and Pansy Parkinson were in the compartment, as well as a few others that I didn't know. I was suddenly glad I had decided to change into my robes.

"I guess. I'm Draco Malfoy." Draco said. Pansy sniffed haughtily. I slipped into the compartment and closed the door quietly.

"My name is Arietta. Thank you for letting me sit in your compartment." I replied quietly, trying to fight off my inferiority complex.

"This is Pansy," Draco pointed at said girl, "Vincent, Gregory," he gestured to his 'bodyguards', "Millicent," he pointed at a rather plain girl across from me, "Blaise," he pointed to the boy next to Millicent, "and Marcus." he pointed to a rather large teen in the corner, who had to be at least sixteen. "Marcus is the Slytherin Quiddich Captain. I assume you know about Quiddich?" Draco asked. I nodded. I recognized all of the names he gave me, so I knew that all these people would be (or were, in Flint's case) Slytherins.

"So, what House do you think you'll be in?" Millicent asked. This startled me a bit, since the books always depicted Slytherins to be selfish and rude. Millicent only sounded curious.

"Honestly? I don't know. I know my sister will be in Gryffindor, no doubt about that, though." I said. (AN: hey, I'm a Slytherin, and damn proud of it!) "What about you?"

"I'm a Slytherin sixth year." Marcus answered.

"My whole family's been in Slytherin, so I will be." Draco answered. Crabbe and Goyle gave matching mumbles of "Slytherin," and I got the same answer from everyone else.

We talked for a while, and when the snack trolley came around, Draco bought us all some sort of candy (I asked for chocolate frogs for the sake of the chocolate). It wasn't long after that that the train started to slow down.

Soon, the train stopped completely, and Marcus told us that that was the sign that we could get off the train. I followed them all out, closing the door behind me.

When we stepped off the train, it was dark, and it took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to the dim light from the lanterns. I opened my mouth to ask where we had to go, but I never got the chance to speak.

"FIRS' YEARS! FIRS' YEARS, THIS WAY!" a gruff voice bellowed. The voice said something in a lower voice, but I couldn't make it out. I knew what he said anyways.

Grinning in relief, I followed the voice, and the huge dark figure that loomed over everyone else, to the edge of the lake, where about a dozen small boats were waiting.

"No more'n four to a boat!" the voice, who I saw was Hagrid, instructed.

I looked around, and spotted an empty boat. I hurried over and got in. I watched as three other kids, two girls (one of them a black girl who I assumed was Lavender Brown and the other a blonde girl with her hair in pigtails who I thought was Hanna Abbot) and a boy, got into my boat. I grinned at them and they returned it with wavering smiles of their own.

"Everyone all set? All righ' then!" Hagrid's voice called out. I felt a sharp jerks and all of a sudden, the boat was moving smoothly across the dark surface of the water. The boats made their way up to the other end of the lake. All around me, I could hear murmurs and whispers of awe, and for once, I was in complete agreement with everyone.

"Oh WOW…" I breathed, looking at the glittering lights in the many windows of the castle. There was a slight bump as the boats hit the shore and everyone stumbled out of the boats, still staring at the castle. The front doors opened and a stern-looking woman in green robes with her hair pulled back in a tight bun looked out at us. I knew without a doubt that this was Professor McGonagall.

"Thank you, Hagrid." She said to the half-giant. "Now, if you would please follow me, the Sorting will begin shortly." With that, she turned away from us and began walking into the entrance hall. We all followed her hesitantly. She led us into a smaller chamber where she stopped again.

"You will wait here until I come back for you. You will wait until your name is called to be Sorted, and then you will join your new House at their table." With that, Professor McGonagall swept out of the room into what I could only assume was the Great Hall.

As we waited, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing. A sudden crash and several screams told me what it was.

"Hahaha! Ickle Firsties, what fun!" an insane voice cackled. I jumped at the crash, and looked upwards as my hand flew to my chest to calm my racing heart. Peeves. That's what I was forgetting. I looked up to see a little man floating upside down above us, holding a bundle of umbrellas and canes. He was wearing orange pants and a lime green jacket, and he had an insane gleam in his eyes. I zoomed above the center of the group and dropped what he was holding. Unfortunately, I was in the middle of the group. I put up my arms to protect myself.

"PEEVES! DON'T MAKE ME GET THE BLOODY BARON!" McGonagall's voice rang out. Peeves cackled again, made a rude noise, and vanished with a soft _pop_. McGonagall looked at the group. "You may follow me into the Great Hall for the Sorting Ceremony." She said. Thoroughly shaken, we all followed her in, some of us shaking more than others.

Somehow, we managed for form an almost-single-file line. I looked up to the front of the Hall and saw the stool and the Sorting Hat. Professor McGonagall unrolled a scroll of parchment and began to call names.

* * *

There. Now, R and R since i gave youa new chapter.


	5. 5: Sorting Feast

Okay, I know for a fact that people are reading this, becauseI got even MORE hits for chapter 4 thanI did for chapter 3, and only two reviews. I need reviews people!

Dis: inoownunosue.

* * *

Somehow, we managed for form an almost-single-file line. I looked up to the front of the Hall and saw the stool and the Sorting Hat. Professor McGonagall unrolled a scroll of parchment and began to call names. 

"Abbot, Hannah!"

The blonde girl I shared the boat with timidly stepped out of the group. She went up to the stool, stumbling a bit on the hem of her robes, and put the Hat on.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat shouted a moment later. The table under the yellow banner erupted into cheers and applause. McGonagall read the next name on the list.

"Bones, Susan!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat shouted again.

"Boot, Terry!" The boy who was in my boat with us ran up to the stool.

"RAVENCLAW!" the Hat decided. It said the same thing for some girl named Mandy Brocklehurst, but the other girl from our boat, Lavender Brown, went to Gryffindor. True to her word, Millicent was sorted into Slytherin. Justin Finch-Fletchley went to Hufflepuff and Seamus Finnigan went to Gryffindor.

"Granger, Arietta!" I jumped as I heard my name called and ran up to the stool. I sat down and put the Hat on my head and waited. I wasn't disappointed, the Hat's voice sounded in my head almost immediately.

"You're very bright; but your memory could use a little work, so Ravenclaw isn't for you. Perhaps you should go to Hufflepuff to get rid of that inferiority complex…Quite the liar as well…" the voice said. "Interesting… You're not really eleven are you?" I stiffened at that. "But that doesn't matter. Your secrets would be best kept in SLYTHERIN!"

I blinked in the sudden light as the Hat was taken off of my head. I watched in awe as the Hogwarts crest on my robes changed to the Slytherin crest. I made my way over to the Slytherin table and sat down just as Hermione was called up. The Sorting was quickly finished, and I only really listened to names I recognized. There was this really hyper girl who was put into Ravenclaw,I think her name was Luna Starre...

Draco, Pansy, Vincent, Gregory, and Blaise were all sorted quickly, with Blaise as the last person on the list.

"Now, before we tuck into the marvelous feast, I have a few words to say. Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!" Dumbledore said. Giggles scattered through the hall.

I had barely taken my eyes away from the Head Table when the smell of chicken reached my nose. My gaze was jerked to the table and I watched in awe as all sorts of foods appeared on the platters and in the bowls.

There were pork ribs, pork chops, chicken, turkey, steak, all sorts of potatoes and vegetables, rice, and even some things that I didn't recognize. I took some steak, rice, and vegetables immediately, and listened to the different conversations going on around me.

"…fourteenth generation pureblood. What about you, Blaise?" Millicent was saying.

"I'm a sixteenth generation." Blaise answered. "Draco?"

"Twenty-first generation. What about you, Arietta? How pure is your bloodline?" Draco turned the conversation in my direction. A burst of panic flashed through my chest and I bit my lip.

"I'd…rather not say…" I said quietly. Millicent and Draco sent me sympathetic looks, but didn't press the issue. I was quiet for the rest of the meal, only half-listening to the conversations around me.

Once all the food had vanished again, Dumbledore stood up again.

"Before we all depart for our beds, there are a few start-of-term announcements I must give. First years should know that the forest is forbidden to all students." At this, he glanced over at the Gryffindor table, at who I assumed were the Weasley Twins. "Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Quiddich tryouts will be held on the second week of term and anyone interested in playing for their house should contact Madam Hooch. And finally, I must tell you that the third-floor corridor on the right side is off-limits to anyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

Whispers broke out through the Hall.

"He's not serious, is he?" Pansy asked fearfully. I rolled my eyes.

"If he wasn't, would he have said it?" I asked, accidentally letting my acquired British accent slip into my natural American one.

"And now, let us sing the school song!" Dumbledore said. He raised his wand and a long purple ribbon shot out of it and it twisted itself into words.

I sang along, listening to all the different tunes. I almost covered my ears at the noise, but oddly enough, it resolved itself into music. Everyone stopped at different times, with the Weasley Twins being the last ones.

"Ah, music, magic beyond all we do here." Dumbledore said once the twins finished their funeral march. "Now, to bed!" He had barely finished the sentence when everyone was getting up and leaving. I heard a female voice yelling out "Slytherin first years follow me!" I glanced around and spotted Professor Snape about to leave the Hall. I rushed after him.

"Professor Snape!" I called as I got closer. He looked around to see who called his name. I caught up with him quickly, all the while mentally cursing the fact that my leg weren't as long as I was used to. He saw me and I watched his gaze flicker to the House Crest on my robes. He was making sure I wasn't the Gryffindor.

"What do you want?" he asked, almost civilly.

"Professor, I need to talk to you about something, since you're my Head of House." I said seriously.

"Go on."

"Well, mostly Purebloods are sorted into Slytherin, and I know how most Purebloods look down on Halfbloods and Muggleborns." I started.

"Your point?" he asked.

"I'm a Muggleborn, sir, and I was wondering if you could talk to the rest of the House about it?" I asked timidly. You could practically hear his mental sigh.

"Very well." He said. "Follow me, I will show you to the Common Room, since you missed the Prefects already." With that, he turned and started walking, his robes billowing out behind him. Sighing in relief, I followed him.

He stopped at a suit of armor that stood alone in the corridor. On the left side of the shoulder plate, a tiny Slytherin Crest was carved.

"The password right now is serpens dentis. Remember it." Snape said. At the given password, a stretch of the stone wall about six feet high and four feet wide opened up, showing a hidden passage.

''_Snake Tooth'? Wow, that's so obvious…_' I thought. I followed Snape into the Common Room. The stone walls were rough, and large green laps hung from the ceiling. A large fire crackled in the fireplace under an elaborately carved mantelpiece. There were large green armchairs lined in silver in front of the fireplace, and there were two sofas and what looked like a coffee table in the middle of the room, the sofas facing the table.

"Girls' dorms are up the stairs on the left. It is already late, so I suggest you go to bed now." Snape said. Without another word, he swept off, probably heading off to where ever his own quarters were. Following his directions, I went into the girls' dorms.

I got into the room, and saw my trunk. It was the only one that DIDN'T already have the Slytherin Crest on it. Making a mental note to put the crest on my trunk, I made my way over. I opened it up and took out my two-piece pajama set. I was about to sit on my bed when I noticed the piece of paper on it. I quickly changed and then looked at the paper. It was my schedule.

I took a quick glance at what classes I had the next day. Transfiguration, Potions, lunch, Charms, and History of Magic.

Setting my wand and schedule on the nightstand, I pulled the covers off my bed and got into it. I vaguely noticed that the room was silent except for the breathing of the other girls since I was the last one up.

The last thought that ran through my mind before I feel asleep was how my House mates would react to my being a Muggleborn.

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And there you have it. 

Now, REVIEW!


	6. 6: Feels Like Home

Yay, I'm back, with more than last time!

Dis: now, really, if i owned HP, would it REALLY center around Harry? didn't think so.

* * *

The last thought that ran through my mind before I feel asleep was how my House mates would react to my being a Muggleborn.

I woke up in the morning to the sounds of people getting ready. Sitting up, I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and started to get ready as well.

Now more awake, I searched for my wand once I had gotten ready for the day.

"Stupid wand…" I muttered, ducking down to look under my bed. I saw it way under the bed near the wall, well out of my short reach. "Damn, I wish I had my own body back, then I'd be able to reach it… _Accio_," I said, holding out my hand. My wand rolled to the tips of my fingers and I grabbed it. Standing up, I brushed off some of the dust on my robes, grabbed my bag, and headed down to the common room.

I entered the room just as Professor Snape finished talking to the rest of the House.

"-and I expect you to treat her just like any other member of this House. If I hear of any misbehavior of any sort, you will get a weeks' detention with me, do I make myself clear?" he was saying. As soon as I walked in, all heads turned towards me, with expressions varying from shock to respect, and I think I saw Pansy's face turn an interesting shade of magenta in her rage.

"It's time for breakfast, so everyone go to the Great Hall," Professor Snape said. I was about to leave when he stopped me and some sixth-year girl.

"Arietta, since you were not present during the pairing, I will explain it to you. Each first-year is paired with an older student, so they can get help with assignments and such so you don't have to come running to me. I am very busy, so I can't have students asking me every little thing. This is Victoria Crabbe." With that, Professor Snape turned and walked away, presumably to breakfast.

I looked at Victoria, and she looked at me with the same speculation. She was of average height, with long brown hair and rather muddy green eyes. She was also about average weight, maybe a little above average, but not by much.

"Hello, my name is Victoria Elizabeth Crabbe. I'm sixteen years old, and am one of the best Charms students in the sixth year. I have a younger brother who just started school this year," Victoria introduced herself, nodding to me. I nodded back.

"I'm Arietta Marie Granger. I'm fif-" I stopped myself before I said 'fifteen', "eleven, and I have a twin who got sorted into Gryffindor," I said.

"Ugh, you're related to a Gryffindor. Well, Vincent might not look like much, but he's smarter than he looks, and so is Gregory." Here she sighed. "You might be a Mu-" here she hesitated before continuing, "-ggleborn, but you're still Slytherin. Come on, I'll show you a shortcut to the Great Hall, since we're almost late for breakfast," Victoria said as she grabbed my hand and literally dragged me out of Slytherin Tower.

She led me down two flights of stairs and four corridors before she stopped next to a statue. The copper plate on the base proclaimed it to be of 'Patricia de Polie'.

"Excusez moi," Victoria said in perfect French. I was about to ask why she was speaking French when the statue responded.

"_Mot de passe?_" it asked in a decidedly feminine voice(1).

"Puissance," Victoria replied(2).

The statue seemed to consider this before nodding to us and stepping aside to reveal a hidden passage.

"_Passez,_" she said(3). Victoria ushered me through the hole.

"Merci," she said, nodding to the statue, which nodded in return and stepped back into her place in front of the hole once she went through.

We were halfway down the passage when I said "That statue was French…"

"Yeah, and she demands that her passwords be in French as well, and she won't reveal the passage if the person asking is rude. She's not 'Patricia the Polite' for nothing," Victoria responded. I fell silent, and the rest of the trip was spent that way.

We made it to the Great Hall just before the doors closed themselves. I hurried to the table with Victoria. She went to sit with her friends, and I looked for a place to sit myself. I was about to sit by myself at the end of the table when I heard my name being called.

"Arietta!"

I looked around and saw Draco trying to get my attention. He gave me the universal 'come over here' sign, and I complied.

"Come sit here," he said. I gave him a skeptical look. He sighed. "Look, I know you're a Muggleborn, and to tell the truth, I really don't care. But appearances must be kept, so I'll have to insult your sister in classes and such, but since you're a Slytherin, people will understand if I don't insult you as well. So sit here with me. Trust me, most of the House is the same way." He sounded so sincere that I believed him and sat down.

I was about to start eating when I heard a loud screech. I looked around to find out where it came from when I remembered: Owl Post. Relaxing, I went back to my food. That's why it surprised me to find a letter being dropped in my lap. I looked up to see a school owl standing on the table looking at me. Handing it a piece of toast, I went to my letter. By the handwriting, I guessed that it was from Hermione.

_Ari-_

_How was your first night in your House? I hope they weren't too mean to you. I've heard that Slytherin can be awful bullies when it comes to Muggleborns. The people in Gryffindor are somewhat stuck-up, and there's a pair of twins that are pranksters._

_I can't wait for classes to start! I've heard we'll be starting small, like turning matchsticks into needles and levitating things._

_Meet me in the library during the free period? I wanted to look something up, and it would be a good time to talk in person._

_We have the first class of the day together, can you believe that? I can't wait. I know you won't have any problems, though, I mean, you're able to pull off a spell that isn't taught until fifth year!_

_Well, see you in class. With any luck, we'll be paired together!_

_-Hermione_

I folded up the letter and looked at my food, suddenly not hungry. She knows that the Summoning Charm is fifth-year material? That's not good. I managed to take a few more bites before I just couldn't swallow anything. Looking to my left to Draco, I saw that a large eagle owl had brought him a package from home. I looked away, jealous.

"Arietta."

I jumped at my name, and at the voice speaking it. It was Vincent Crabbe, and I was sure I hadn't seen him sitting on Draco's left side.

"Are you going to finish your food?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No, you can have it." Vincent grinned and nodded his thanks. Looking at Draco, I saw he was immersed in his letter. Suddenly feeling like I was only in the way, I quietly got up.

"Hey, where are you going?" Vincent looked up and asked.

"To the library. Tell Draco where I went if he asks." Vincent nodded and went back to his food. I grabbed my bag from its place at my feet and walked towards the double doors.

I half expected someone to stop me, but it was obviously a normal thing for students to leave a meal early.

The entrance hall was quiet. All I could hear was the murmur of the portraits on the walls and the scraping of the moving staircases. I was about to choose one when I remembered that I had no idea where the library was.

"Excuse me," I politely stopped a passing ghost, "but could you point me in the direction of the library?"

The ghost, a female dressed in a lacey gown, smiled at me.

"If you take the staircase on the right of the double doors, they'll take you to the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw. Take a left, and go up the first staircase you see. That should take you straight to the library." I nodded.

"And from there, what's the fastest route to the dungeons?" I asked.

"You come back here and take that staircase." She pointed to the stairs right in front of me that led downward.

"Thank you."

"No problem. Gook luck in class." With that, she floated through the nearest wall. I took the route she told me to, and within minutes, I was in the library.

I stepped through the doors and looked around in awe. Thousands upon thousands of books were on the shelves. I would have dove right into them, but I remembered that I had Potions first thing. With a sigh, I made my way to the dungeons.

I made it just as the bell rang. I was able to slide into a seat next to Draco just before Snape stormed into the room.

I watched in awe as what was once, to me, a scene in a book came to life. Snape took roll call, pausing when he got to Harry's name.

"Ah, yes, Harry Potter, our new celebrity…" he said softly. Draco, Vincent, and Gregory all started snickering.

"Stop it," I hissed, elbowing Draco. It felt amazingly like scolding my little brother. Looking annoyed, Draco reluctantly nodded and nudged Vince and Greg and made them stop laughing as well. I turned back to the front to discover that I missed the exchange between Harry and Snape.

Snape paired everyone up so we could work on that boil-curing potion. Of course, Murphey's Law decided that was the perfect time to exact a little vengeance for my near-perfect Diagon Alley trip. I got paired with Neville.

Surprisingly, things went relatively well, until it came to the porcupine-quills bit. Seeing that he was about to add them, I stopped him.

"Take it off the fire," I hissed.

"Huh?"

"The potion, take it off the fire or it'll explode all over you when you add the quills."

"Oh." He took the cauldron off the fire before adding the ingredient, and sighed in relief when it didn't blow up. To be honest, I expected it to explode anyways, just to prove me wrong. Snape passed by at the moment. He looked at our cauldron, and then at us and ground out the word "Acceptable." Neville looked elated.

Potions was the only class we had with the Gryffindors, up until someone posted the notice about flying class. Most of the first years groaned. They had been taught as children, and we had it with 'those bloody Gryffindors'. I was looking forward to it immensely.

That morning at breakfast, I got another note from Hermione.

_Ari-_

_Can you BELIEVE we get taught flying? I can't wait! Harry and Ron are both groaning since we have the class with you Slytherins. I still don't see how you can stand that Malfoy person. Everyone I talk to says he's a real git._

_See you in class, then!_

_-Herm_

I grinned and scribbled a reply on the back.

_Hermi-_

_I KNOW, I've wanted to be able to fly since I was a child, I can't wait. Most of our first years are groaning about having class with all 'those bloody Gryffindors'._

_Draco's pretty decent, but you're probably just seeing him like a Gryffindor instead of a Slytherin. Which reminds me. I know this is very un-Slytherin of me, but how about we switch places for a night, maybe on a weekend? We're identical, right? That way, I could learn about your House and you could learn about mine._

_How about it?_

_-Ari_

Giving the owl, who I recognized as Hedwig, a bit of toast, I asked her to take the note back to Hermione. She hooted softly and flew back. I watched from across the Hall as Hermione's face went from interested to excited. She scribbled something under my note and had Hedwig fly it back.

_Ari-_

_That's a great idea. We ARE identical, so nobody would know. You have the same free period as we do, so can we discuss it then?_

_-Herm_

Thinking for a second after wondering vaguely if this was the wizarding equivalent to Instant Messaging, my mind hit the Room of Requirement.

_Hermi-_

_Seventh floor, across from that tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy and those trolls. Meet me there, I know how to get in. It's called the Room of Requirement, don't tell anyone else. Bring a spare set of your robes?_

_-Ari_

Hermione looked at me across the hall and nodded.

Checking my schedule, I happily discovered that our free time was just before our flying lesson.

After three excruciatingly long classes, I ran up to the seventh floor with a set of my spare robes in my bag and looked for the tapestry. I found it just as Hermione came up. Before she even opened her mouth, I started walking back and forth in front of a bare stretch of wall. I concentrated on a place that I knew by heart. After my third pace, a worn door appeared. Grinning, I ignored my twin's whispered 'bloody hell?' and opened the door.

I was greeted to the familiar sight of violet walls, tan carpeting, and twin-size bed. I was looking at my bedroom from home.

"Welcome," I started, grinning at Hermione's stunned face, "to the Room of Requirement."

"Bloody hell," she said, "does it look like this every time?"

"Nope," I responded cheerfully, "which is why it's called the Room of Requirement. It turns into whatever you require. So," I sat down on the familiar bed, "you bring the robes?"

Hermione got over her shock quickly and sat down next to me. She took a set of robes out of her bag at the same time I did.

"What about your accent? It's different than mine is," she asked.

"I can copy your accent, what about you?" I replied, imitating her accent as best I could.

"I'm fine," she said with a flawless American accent. Impressed, I nodded and handed her my robes. She did the same to me.

Grinning, I quickly changed into her robes. At her curious look, I said, "I'm going to our flying lesson as you, so you might want to go as me." A look of understanding crossed her face before quickly being replaced by an evil grin that I didn't know she was capable of. Within a minute, we looked like each other.

"Well," she started, in that American accent, "we may as well get going if we're gonna make it."

"Yeah, lets."

With identical evil grins, we left the Room of Requirement and headed towards the Quiddich pitch.

* * *

Oooooh, everything's moving slightly faster now. I can't wait to write the flying scene... 


	7. 7: Trading Spaces

Hi! sorry, for the wait, but I needed to keep working on Guardian Wings, and I'm almost done with it! ...come to think of it, I'm about half-done with this as well, the next chapter is gonna be the Halloween incident and the Quidditch match, then Christmas and the Forbidden Forest, then after that i think is the sneaking-past-Fluffy thing.

dis: (insert standard "i-don't-own" phrase here)

Ah, by the way, the line breaks don't like me today, so they're not here.

With identical evil grins, we left the Room of Requirement and headed towards the Quidditch pitch.

We got outside just as Madam Hooch was done explaining how to get the brooms off the ground. The two of us scurried to the last remaining spots. There was a spot between Ron and Neville that was probably for Hermione and a spot right on the end on the opposite side next to Draco for me. We took each other's places quickly. I looked at Neville, who was standing next to me and shaking nervously.

"It's alright, Neville, just stay calm," I whispered quickly. Holding my hand confidently over the old broom in front of me, I gave a forceful "Up!" and grinned like an idiot when it actually worked.

When Hooch blew her whistle, which was high enough to hurt my ears, everyone was supposed to float up a few feet. Apparently, Neville panicked and kicked off hard. Soon I was watching the book scene played out, right down to Madam Hooch's "Broken wrist…" statement.

Slightly dazed, I started really paying attention again when I saw something in Draco's hand sparkling in the sun. I didn't catch what he said, but I heard Harry's reaction loud and clear.

"Give it here, Malfoy."

"No," Draco replied tartly, "I think I'll leave it somewhere for Longbottom to find. Up a tree, maybe?" He mounted his broom and took off into the air. I barely had time to blink before Harry was up there with him. I couldn't make out what was being said, but I knew what was happening the second Draco sped back to the ground and Harry went into that neck-risking dive. Even though I knew what would happen, I was waiting like everyone else, frozen to the spot. There's just something about actually being there that makes it much more intense than just reading about it.

The second Harry landed, all of the first year Gryffindors swarmed around him. He was holding up the recovered Remembrall like a trophy. The Slytherins all had sour looks on their faces, including Hermione.

'_She's a damn good actress…_' I thought, impressed. I was turning back to celebrate with the other first years when movement from the double doors caught my eye. McGonagall. Everyone went dead silent as she approached.

"Potter, come with me."

"But, Professor-" Ron started.

"Quiet, Mr. Weasley."

"Professor, D- Malfoy started-" I piped up; knowing very well what was happening and catching myself before I could say 'Draco'.

"That's _enough_, Ms. Granger." She led Harry back into the castle just as Hooch came back out. She had the class do a few exercises to get comfortable in the air before she ran out of time and dismissed us.

"So, Potter, when're they getting you back onto the train to send you back to the Muggles?" Draco asked the next morning at breakfast. Hermione and I had long since switched back, and I was standing behind him. I saw my sister a little ways down the table, discretely listening in.

"You're pretty brave now that you're back on the ground with your little friends, Malfoy," Harry replied smoothly. Ron snickered and I saw Draco's ears go pink from behind.

"I'd take you on any time by myself," Draco retorted, "even tonight, if you want. Wizards duel. Wands only, no contact. You've heard of a wizard's duel before, I trust?"

"Of course he has," Ron bristled. "I'm his second, who's yours?"

Draco turned to Vincent, Gregory, and me. After his eyes traveled across us several times, they came to a rest on me.

"Arietta." He turned to Ron and Harry again. "The trophy room, at midnight, it's always unlocked." With that, Draco turned and stalked back to the Slytherin table.

"You're not seriously thinking of dueling the Boy Who Lived, are you, Draco?" Vincent asked. I blinked at the sudden question, not used to them being smart.

"Of course not, Vince. We'll tip off Filch and Potter'll get in trouble for being out after curfew," Draco replied smoothly.

"Good thinking, Draco," Gregory said. I was about to open my mouth to say something when the bell for morning classes rang.

The day flew by almost quicker than I could keep track of it. Sooner than I expected, it was curfew.

"All students in bed!" called the Head Girl. I climbed into my bed, a knot of guilt forming in my chest.

Tossing and turning, I tried in vain to get to sleep. Eventually, I sat up and glanced at the magical clock on the wall. 11:45.

'_If I hurry, I can warn them…_' I thought. After a moment of hesitation, I threw on a pair of jeans under my nightgown and snuck out of the dorms.

It was easy enough getting to the trophy room. It was on the third floor, and it had two big trophies on either side of it. I had just managed to get inside the door when I heard voices.

"…ickened out?" That was Ron's voice. That meant that they were there.

"He's trying to get you into trouble, he's tipped Filch," I whispered loudly in their direction. I heard some gasps and scrambling around. It was Ron who poked his head around a trophy case to look.

"You! You're a Slytherin! Come to get us into trouble?"

"No, you moron!" I said, slipping back to my American self. "I'm trying to help you! You have to-"

"Sniff around, my sweet… They're probably hiding somewhere…" My heart leapt into my throat.

"Filch!" I mouthed. Grabbing Ron's arm, I dragged him over to where I knew the others were standing. "We have to run!"

"To where?" Harry mouthed back at me.

"Anywhere!" Without really thinking, I dragged the three of them, Harry, Ron, and Neville, out of the trophy room and down the hall. We didn't stop running until I heard a sound that made me freeze. A doorknob was rattling a couple doors down.

"Oh no, oh no no no…" I muttered, trying to think of how to escape.

"What now?" Ron asked.

"Peeves," I said, just as the poltergeist shot through the door. He spotted us and gave a cackle of delight.

"Peeves, shut up, please, you'll get us thrown out!" Harry pleaded.

"Tut tut, Ickle Firsties. Naughty naughty, you'll get caughty!" he said in a singsong voice. I heard Filch not far away, and took a huge gamble.

"What if I told you I could get you pranking immunity for one night?" I asked. "One night where nobody could catch you? If you keep quiet on us, I might even be able to keep the Baron away from you for a while! I'm a Slytherin, you know! A Firsty, even!"

"Oh, just get out of the way!" Ron snapped, taking a swipe at Peeves. I groaned at his stupidity even as Peeved grinned maniacally and took a deep breath.

"STUDENTS OUT OF BED! STUDENTS OUT OF BED IN THE CHARMS CORRIDOR!"

"SCATTER!" I yelled to the boys. I grabbed Neville by the arm really quickly before he tripped and said "Alohamora. The unlocking charm." Then I ran towards the main staircase to the dungeons.

I kept running long after the footsteps behind me faded. I was saying the password almost before I found the right stretch of wall. Never had I been more glad to see the empty common room than at that moment. Quietly, I took off my shoes and padded across the cold stones of the floor to the door to the girls dorm. As silently as I could, I eased open the door and slipped in. I flopped onto my four-poster bed and fell asleep instantly, not bothering to close the green silk curtains.

Nope, still no line breaks...

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	8. 8: Such Is Desire

This'll be probably the only update for who knows how long.

AH, we have linebreaks!

disclaimer: no own.

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I kept running long after the footsteps behind me faded. I was saying the password almost before I found the right stretch of wall. Never had I been more glad to see the empty common room than at that moment. Quietly, I took off my shoes and padded across the cold stones of the floor to the door to the girls dorm. As silently as I could, I eased open the door and slipped in. I flopped onto my four-poster bed and fell asleep instantly, not bothering to close the green silk curtains.

The next morning at breakfast, Draco was looking over at the Gryffindor table with a look of disgust on his face.

"He's Harry bloody Potter, the rules don't apply to him," he grumbled when asked about it. He looked even more pissed off when post came in. Six large owls were carrying a long, thin package covered in brown paper, bound directly for the Boy-Who-Lived.

"It's a Nimbus Two Thousand…"I murmured as we watched Harry open it.

"What?" Draco yelped, outraged. "But first years aren't allowed on the House teams!"

"He's Harry bloody Potter," I mimicked, "the rules don't apply to him." A small brown owl fluttered over to me with a folded piece of parchment. Slipping the bird some toast, I opened the note.

_Ari-_

_Be glad you don't have to sit here, ever since that broomstick arrived it's been "Quidditch" this and "Quidditch" that. Honestly, I actually told them that I'm not speaking to either Harry or Ron until they stop fawning over that stupid piece of charmed wood._

_They are such men. Honestly, it's like they've never seen a broomstick before!_

_They're leaving now, so I may as well follow. See you in class._

_-Herm_

Draco scowled and got up, following Harry and Ron out of the Great Hall. Knowing what was about to happen, I decided to stay and finish breakfast, holding back a couple of yawns.

The day went by very quickly, so much so that before I really knew it, I was in the common room working on Herbology homework.

_Illusion Weed is commonly used in invisibility potions, as well as being a key ingredient in the potion used to start the initial transformation of an Animagus, since an Animagus form is comsidered a 'false form'. Illusion Weed must be used quickly, because it vanishes anywhere from one to three hours after harvesting._

Setting aside my Herbology assignment, I picked up the Charms parchment.

_Pick five charms or spells you would most like to learn over the course of this year._

I thought for a moment, trying to pick out what would be considered first year material. I immediately wrote down _Levitation_ before thinking some more. _Tickling Charm_ followed the first, and _Engorgement Charm _and_ Shrinking Charm_ were next.

"That's four…" I murmured. "What else…?"

"I wrote down the Animation Charm," Draco said. "I heard from Alexander that it was going to be on the exam."

"Alexander?" I asked.

"My guide. I heard you got Victoria."

"Ah. Makes sense," I said. Remembering what the book said, I grumbled under my breath, "Stupid pineapple…"

I don't ever remember having as much fun in school as I did in Hogwarts, and it amazed me that it was Halloween already.

Slytherins had Charms first thing, before the Ravenclaws. Professor Flitwick finally announced that he was going to teach us the Levitation spell, which brought on a round of subtle cheering from the class. He put us into groups of two, and I got paired with Pansy.

"Good luck, Muggleborn," she sneered quietly, putting odd emphasis on 'Muggleborn'. I gave her a Malfoy-worthy smirk and copied the wand-motion.

"Wingardium Leviosa," I said clearly. Once I was sure the spell was anchored, I raised my wand and watched in satisfaction as my feather rose. Pansy made a strangled noise not unlike the whistling of a teapot.

"Very good, Ms. Granger, five points to Slytherin!" Flitwick praised. I let the spell stop and the feather started drifting down. I caught it and handed it to Pansy.

"Good luck, Pansy," I said sweetly. She snatched the feather from my hand furiously and set it on the table. She tried three times to make it levitate. I don't think I've ever had so much fun in one class before.

The classes flew by, and soon, it was the Halloween Feast. Honestly, it would take an army of young children with a massive sweet tooth to eat all the candy that was put in front of us.

There were live bats swooping through the Great Hall, and it freaked me out for the first ten minutes or so until I got used to them.

All throughout the meal, something was tugging at my mind, telling me that I needed to remember it. It didn't hit me until half-way through that Hermione never made it to the Great Hall. A flash of anxiety jabbed through my chest as I remembered what was going to happen. I was about to get up to go find her when the doors to the Great Hall were thrown open and Quirrell came barreling through.

"TROLL! IN THE DUNGEONS!" he hollered. I paused for a moment to regain his breath before saying one past sentence before passing out. "Thought you ought to know."

There was dead silence in the Hall. Then everyone started screaming at once, and some students were running towards the double doors.

"SILENCE!" Dumbledore boomed. Everyone froze and shut up. "Head of Houses, please calmly lead your students back to the dormitories. The rest of the staff would please follow me."

I saw Professor Snape discretely tell the Head Girl something, and then he left through the secret passage behind the Head Table. When I realized what was happening, I panicked.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked me.

"My sister, she's in the girls' bathroom that the troll is about to go into, and she doesn't know about it!" I said frantically. I relaxed marginally when I saw Harry and Ron thinking along the same lines as they snuck out.

"The professors will find her, she'll be fine," Draco reassured me, "Come on, let's get back to the common room."

I nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

The next morning, I saw Hermione at the Gryffindor table, chatting with the boys as if they'd been friends all their lives.

"And there's the Gryffindor Golden Trio," I murmured. Harry was dressed in red and gold instead of the uniform black, which alerted me to the impending Quidditch match.

"Dammit," I muttered, "us against them, and I really don't like how it's going to end…"

"Are you a Seer or something?" Vincent suddenly asked from my left.

"Or something…" I said as we all got up to head out to the pitch.

Not matter how many times you read it, there's absolutely NOTHING that can prepare you for your first Quidditch game. My heart nearly stopped more often than I cared to count because of all of the maneuvers that the players had to pull. Even though I knew he was going to be fine, I had to stifle a gasp when Harry's broom started to jerk around.

I looked around me and saw Snape staring at Harry, and it took me almost ten seconds to remember what was happening. I looked for Quirrell. I saw him a few rows down from Snape, staring at Harry as well. I was debating rushing over to make him stop when I saw Snape start thrashing around trying to put out the fire on his robes.

When I saw Harry shoot towards the ground, though, I knew it was all over.

"And Potter catches the Snitch! GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

Even though I knew it was going to happen, I still groaned and sulked with the rest of Slytherin.

"He didn't CATCH it, he nearly SWALLOWED it…" Flint was grumbling an hour later. I was sorely tempted to try a Silencing charm on him, even though I knew it was at least fourth year material.

Hogwarts was pretty uneventful for a while, and soon Christmas was on its way. I knew something important was going to happen, and I couldn't remember what until it hit me in the middle of Transfigurations around the middle of the month. The Mirror of Erised.

"You," I hissed at Draco one evening.

"What?" he asked, setting aside his homework.

"You're coming with me, we need to find something."

"Why?"

"So we can beat Potter to it."

Draco was silent for a moment before he said, "I'm in."

I remembered reading something online about the Mirror being stashed in the Room of Requirement, and I knew that we were technically out after curfew, but at the moment, it didn't matter.

It wasn't long at all before I was opening the Room of Requirement. It looked like an old classroom: full of dust and grime, with the desks and chairs pushed up against one wall, stacked up to make as much room as possible. In the center of the floor was the Mirror.

"We came all this way for a mirror?" Draco whispered. I rolled my eyes and pointed at the rim.

"'I show not your face but your heart's desire,'" I read. "It's not a real mirror. You don't see a physical reflection, you see a reflection of what you want in your heart."

Draco looked at me like I'd grown a second head and another pair of arms. He glanced in the Mirror and, even though I couldn't see what he did, I definitely saw the blush form on his pale face. Sighing and rolling my eyes again, I walked in front of the Mirror and pushed him aside. What I saw shocked me.

I was standing in the Mirror, but it wasn't the physical self I'd gotten used to over the last few months. I saw myself as an adult, with a man holding me in his arms, a man who looked eerily familiar. Glancing at Draco, I looked back at the reflection. My heart twisted painfully when the two people in the Mirror kissed briefly before the me in the Mirror held up her left hand. On it sparkled a beautiful silver ring with a green gem. Then she reached up one of her sleeves and pulled out a wand.

I'd had enough. I stumbled away from the Mirror, making the scene vanish.

"My, my, you two are the second students I've met here tonight," Dumbledore's voice said from behind us. I jumped and stifled a shriek.

"Professor, don't do that!" I said as I whirled around. Dumbledore smiled serenely.

"You would do well you go to bed, Mr. Malfoy, Ms. Granger. The Mirror will be moved tomorrow to a new location. Oh, and five points to Slytherin, Ms. Granger," he added, "for correctly identifying an obviously powerful magical object not covered in classes."

"Yes, sir, thank you. We'll go now." I saw Draco yawn out of the corner of my eye and wondered just how late it had gotten. As we walked out of the room, I just caught the headmaster's last words.

"It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live."

The two of us trudged along silently back to the dorms.

"What did you see?" Draco suddenly asked. I looked at him. He looked uncharacteristically curious.

"I saw myself…as an adult," I said, trying to phrase it vaguely enough that he wouldn't catch on. "I was with a man, and I was wearing a beautiful ring, and I was… happy." I looked at him, startled by the look on disappointment in his eyes. "What about you?"

"Oh…" he mumbled, not acting like himself at all, "I was older, with a girl, we were…" he trailed off, muttering the last part and not looking me in the face.

"You were what?" I asked.

"Making out," he snapped, his face turning red again. I giggled.

"Draco's got a cru-ush, Draco's got a cru-ush," I said, grinning. He took a half-hearted swing at me.

"Stop that," he said, still blushing, "I do not."

"I think you do, Dray," I said. He looked at me.

"What did you call me?" he asked.

"I called you 'Dray'. It's the first half of your name, isn't it?" I asked, curious. Did he not like it?

"Oh."

"It's alright if I call you that, isn't it?" I asked. "I won't use it if you don't—"

"It's fine—Ari," he said, smirking playfully. With that, he said the password (when had we gotten to the dungeons, anyways?) and went into the common room. He must have gone into his dorm as soon as he went in, because I didn't see him till breakfast the next morning.

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